Hạ Long Bay, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is the most popular destination in northern Vietnam. The bay is made up of thousands of towering pillars of limestone karst formations rising from the waters, similar to what you may find in Arecibo, Puerto Rico, but the Hạ Long karsts dramatically rise from the ocean. Choosing our trip was difficult; I knew that Hạ Long Bay would be plenty full of tourists and many people had recommended Cat Ba or Bai Tu Long Bay for being far less crowded but I wanted to see the quantity of formations that Hạ Long Bay best provided. While the visit included being surrounded by many other tours, it was not terrible other than the crush at Sung Sot Cave and Titop Island. From the land reclamation works being carried out at the pier, I suspect that Hạ Long Bay is about to explode with Chinese tourists in a couple of years so it was now or never in my mind. I specifically mention Chinese tourists because our guides mentioned that Chinese tourists avoided booking overnight boat excursions and in general seemed to want to visit the bay but were constrained by the lack of land side hotels. Personally, waking up on a boat in the middle of the bay was a highlight.
We boarded through this door
The water supplier and her hound
SB and SIL named this "The kissing chickens"
Bai Tu Long Bay to the northeast has the largest concentration of karst formations and tide eroded grottos while Cat Ba Island to the southwest is one of the larger formations and is popular with rock climbers. The Hạ Long limestone has evolved over 500 million years and the particular karst formations have undergone 20 million years of fluvial action under a tropical and wet climate. Hạ Long Bay is home to 14 endemic flora and 60 endemic fauna. Humans occupied the caves for thousands of years; the Soi Nhu from 18,000 to 7000 BC, the Cai Beo from 7000 to 5000 BC, and the Hạ Long from 5,000 to 3,500 BC.
More evolved(?) humans in the bay, SB and SIL
After cruising out into the bay and being awestruck by the sights, we visited Sung Sot cave (more about that in a separate post) and then settled into a cove to paddle around and enjoy some up close and personal encounters with the local flora and fauna.
There are half a dozen monkeys in this picture
We boarded through this door
The water supplier and her hound
SB and SIL named this "The kissing chickens"
Bai Tu Long Bay to the northeast has the largest concentration of karst formations and tide eroded grottos while Cat Ba Island to the southwest is one of the larger formations and is popular with rock climbers. The Hạ Long limestone has evolved over 500 million years and the particular karst formations have undergone 20 million years of fluvial action under a tropical and wet climate. Hạ Long Bay is home to 14 endemic flora and 60 endemic fauna. Humans occupied the caves for thousands of years; the Soi Nhu from 18,000 to 7000 BC, the Cai Beo from 7000 to 5000 BC, and the Hạ Long from 5,000 to 3,500 BC.
More evolved(?) humans in the bay, SB and SIL
After cruising out into the bay and being awestruck by the sights, we visited Sung Sot cave (more about that in a separate post) and then settled into a cove to paddle around and enjoy some up close and personal encounters with the local flora and fauna.
There are half a dozen monkeys in this picture
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